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Gurlitt Art Trove

After authorities discovered a hoard of artworks in the Munich apartment of Cornelius Gurlitt, the special taskforce “Schwabinger Kunstfund” was formed in order to clarify their origin, as well as that of other works later found in Salzburg. Its primary task was to investigate whether any of the works in Gurlitt’s possession were illegally confiscated from their owners by the National Socialist regime between 1933 and 1945. The work of the taskforce, for which the German Lost Art Foundation assumed responsibility on 1 April 2015, concluded on 31 December 2015 as planned.

In January 2016, the German Lost Art Foundation will launch a new project titled “Gurlitt Provenance Research” which will continue the investigation of the Gurlitt art collection. Research efforts will focus on determining the provenance of works which have not yet been conclusively clarified. Of primary interest are works for which there is a suspicion that they went missing as a result of Nazi persecution or for which such claims have been made.

The project team is headed by Dr. Andrea Baresel-Brand, who is responsible for controlling, administrating and coordinating tasks, and supported by researchers who will conduct provenance research on specific works. A panel of distinguished international experts will review the project’s research findings with regard to their credibility and the appropriate use of scientific methodology. The project will draw on the personal expertise and familiarity with the Gurlitt art collection gained over the past two years. The research findings will be published in German and English following their evaluation by the review experts.

The project is financed by the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media and is scheduled to run for at least one year.